The Merriweather chicken statue
Here's a look at that chicken I was telling you about. It's about 15 feet tall and weighs 7,500 lbs.
It's called the Great Key West Chicken, and was made by Maryland artist Derek Arnold.
This is one chicken you don't wanna mess with.
What does it have to do with music? Not much, really. But it certainly helps spruce up Merriweather.
I got a peak at Merriweather's new Music Pinball Hall of Fame yesterday, which is also pretty cool ...
There are nine machines, and each one only costs a quarter to play. A quarter! It's been a while since I hit up an arcade, but I vaguely remember some pinball machines charging $1 per play.
They're vintage-looking machines, too -- Dolly Parton, Elvis, Guns 'N' Roses and the like. I didn't get the chance to play one (all the other journalists and politicos were hogging the machines when I was there) but I'm sure I will the next time I'm at the amphitheater.
I also hope those pinball machines have got spill-guards. Beer + pinball can make for a messy time.
(Sun photo by Amy Davis)
Categories: Bars & Clubs, Local music, Random stuff
Erik Maza is a features reporter at the Baltimore Sun. He writes for several sections of the Sun paper and contributes weekly columns on music and nightlife. He also writes and edits the Midnight Sun blog. He often covers entertainment, business, and the business of entertainment. Occasionally, he writes about Four Loko, The Block, the liquor board, and those who practice "
Comments
This statue is an eye sore. Just as bad as the statues in Patterson Park...down right ugly.
Posted by: BaltBabs | June 2, 2009 10:10 AM
Cost a quarter to play? A quarter?!
Who carries change these days?
Here's to hoping they also have a credit card swiper.
Posted by: Brad - BeerInBaltimore.com | June 2, 2009 10:26 AM
Baltbabs, it's not as bad as Male/Female at Penn Station.
Posted by: Sam Sessa | June 2, 2009 10:53 AM
Sam, so true! Such a beautiful building with the most unsignificant statue outside it. I hope it was donated by MICA :-)
Posted by: BaltBabs | June 2, 2009 11:02 AM
MICA had nothing to do with "Male/Female". It was "a site-specific gift from the Municipal Arts Society of Baltimore, a private foundation." Full story here:
http://www.citypaper.com/arts/story.asp?id=8652
It's not just ugly, IMO, but the scale... it's just too big.
Posted by: Paul R | June 3, 2009 9:21 AM
I probably should have finished my thought...I hope it was a donation and not a purchase
Posted by: BaltBabs | June 3, 2009 2:15 PM
Just got back into town and realized I forgot to report on this. I was there for the M3 Rock Festival on Saturday (Y&T, Bullet Boys, and Extreme were the highlights). The chicken is pretty cool, actually.
The lines for the ladies bathrooms seemed shorter than the mens, so they must have done something there.
Overall it's actually a really nice place to see a show. Picnic benches in the back, lots of places to buy beer and food. We had a nice relaxing time. The awesome weather certainly didn't hurt.
Posted by: Ryan Graham | June 4, 2009 11:57 AM
I thought is patchwork folk art went out during the late seventies. Who really wants a 15 ft. scrap metal rooster?
Posted by: Stebbin | June 4, 2009 12:39 PM
I thought is patchwork folk art went out during the late seventies. Who really wants a 15 ft. scrap metal rooster?
Posted by: Stebbin | June 4, 2009 7:30 PM